Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Two Links

I generally shy away from posts that consist primarily of links to other blogs, but, in this case, I want to highlight two ongoing series elsewhere that I've been enjoying and I think deserve greater exposure.

The first is over at Fr Dave's Blood of Prokopius blog, where he's been engaging in a thought experiment I, too, have pondered: the amalgamation of the Holmes Blue Book with David Cook's Expert Rules. It's a very interesting series so far and definitely speaks to me, given my fondness for Holmes.

The second can be found at John Laviolette's The Nine and Thirty Kingdoms, where his "Liber Zero" retro-clone project has really given me a lot of food for thought about the mechanical underpinnings and assumptions of OD&D. And while his recent "Clerics Without Spells" post isn't technically part of the Liber Zero project, it seems to build on some of the insights he's had about OD&D while working on his retro-clone. Plus, it's just a darned cool idea that I kinda wish I'd thought of myself.

6 comments:

  1. May I gently suggest not bothering with the "I don't usually do this, but" prefaces? This is your blog, and if you find something that moves you enough to share ... just do it.

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  2. Bob,

    That's a good suggestion, actually. Thanks for it.

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  3. Have you seen this post about alternate Cleric powers from the Rambling Bumblers blog?
    http://webamused.com/bumblers/2009/04/27/i-need-a-miracle/

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  4. James,

    Thanks for mentioning my posts. I am glad you are enjoying them. I also wanted to thank you, because it was your own love for Holmes that inspired me to get my own copy out and re-read it.

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  5. @GSV: Nice link, thanks! I love anything that makes an easy distinction between arcane and divine magic, especially when it highlights who is actually in control.

    My one nitpick would be that, embracing the tenets of Christianity should mean than a blessing (helping others) is more likely to work than a boon (helping yourself).

    Other than that I LOVE the feel of this mechanic.

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  6. Interesting, Blogger ate my comment...

    I just wanted to say thanks, James. I am glad you are enjoying my posts as much as I have enjoyed writing them; however, I would never have been inspired to crack open Holmes again after all these years if your love for his work hadn't inspired me...

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